A call for dialogue: psychotherapists and psychologists specialising in psychotherapy

The development of psychotherapy as an independent discipline in many countries in Europe has stimulated debate within the field of psychology as to what constitutes psychotherapy as a specialism of psychology. The authors, both clinical psychologists who pursued further training in psychotherapy, offer a reflection in this paper on the historical battle between psychiatry and psychology for ‘ownership’ of psychotherapy, describe recent developments in Europe to clarify this specialism within psychology and discuss the distinctive contributions that psychologists offer in developing psychotherapy as a specialism within the discipline. The aim of the paper is to begin a dialogue both within the profession of psychology and outside the profession, with our psychotherapy colleagues, that can develop into an interdisciplinary discourse and a more mutually respectful professional environment.     

Supervising Humanistic-Existential Psychotherapy: Needs, Possibilities

The competency movement within professional psychology, evidence-based practice concepts, and the trend toward incorporating psychological services as a component of an integrated care approach within health care settings are major developments in the changing landscape of psychotherapy practice that have important implications for psychotherapy supervision. This article examines each of these developments as they relate to conducting psychotherapy supervision from a humanistic-existential perspective. The current status of supervision guided by a humanistic-existential framework is described, followed by exploration of needs and possibilities for the future evolution of the supervision approach in light of developments in the field.     

A Cross-Sectional Examination of International Competency Standards

The evaluation of competency in the field of psychology has gained international attention in recent years. Focusing on international competencies can promote high standards of care and identify common values of the profession. However, there is little research regarding international perceptions of competency. Examining ethics codes from different countries can highlight international standards of competent practice, as ethics codes outline professional expectations of the field. The current study compared the ethics standards found in 47 codes of ethics representing 51 countries. Seventeen competency standards emerged after ethics codes were analyzed. Implications for the international practice of psychology are discussed.     

Examining the role and functions of self-development in healthcare therapy trainings: A review of the literature with a modest proposal for the use of learning agreements

Many healthcare trainings with a psychodynamic orientation encourage or require students to commit to a process of personal development, such as provided through attending individual psychotherapy and/or an experiential ‘as if therapy’ group. This paper reviews recent literature about training in psychodynamically oriented practices within counselling psychotherapy, psychiatry, the creative arts therapies and clinical psychology. The results indicate that the mandatory personal development dimension of therapy training needs urgent reassessment. Results of studies consistently call for further research about the direct benefits of personal development on students’ development of skills for therapy practice. There is minimal evidence to indicate what self-development through individual psychotherapy can specifically deliver in terms of eventual professional competence. To address some aspects of the current lacuna, this paper summarises the recommendations for training programmes available from the current research, and makes a modest proposal for the use of learning agreements, rather than only mandated hurdle requirements, to ensure that the incremental steps by which the student attains expected requirements is negotiated and agreed within regularised, and widely accepted university course procedures.     

Psychology as a discipline of discourse

This paper begins with a discussion of various layers of meaning now associated with the term ‘discourse’. Particular attention is paid to one aspect of discourse, namely the notion of ‘dialogue’. Some of Mikhail Bakhtin's ideas on dialogue are outlined, leading towards his emphasis on life, itself, being dialogical by its very nature. The author then articulates some of his own activities in psychotherapy,identifying various ways in which aspects of discourse are involved in his daily practice as a ‘professional conversationalist’. He then spells out an agenda for developing a psychology viewed and approached as a ‘discipline of discourse’. He finishes by indicating some of the implications of this perspective.     

Parent‐infant‐psychotherapy and psychoanalytic treatment: contradiction or mutual inspiration?

Psychoanalysis and parent‐infant‐psychotherapy are compared. Although parent‐infant‐psychotherapy developed from psychoanalysis, it appears at first glance not to be “analytic” with its aim of dealing quickly with the symptoms presented and also with its different setting. The author shows that an analytic approach in understanding the multi‐facetted net of relationships between family members and the infant in its “phantasmic interaction” and a consideration of the implication for analysis of the empirical research carried out in conjunction with parent‐infant‐therapy can lead to a fruitful exchange of ideas. One example of this is research into the correlation between attachment patterns and the processing of conflicts. Furthermore a dialogue between these two disciplines can remind psychoanalysts that a critical discussion of the external circumstances of their methods does not immediately call into question their fundamental approach to therapy: the work in transference on relationship fantasies.     

团体心理咨询与治疗师胜任特征初探

为了探索团体心理咨询与治疗师的胜任力模型,本研究用行为事件访谈法对13位团体心理咨询与治疗师进行访谈,分析文献提取并整理成编码词表,并对访谈数据进行编码,统计各词条在访谈资料里的出现频次并排序。最终提炼出了团体心理咨询与治疗师的基准性胜任特征和鉴别性胜任特征,并整理得到了团体心理咨询与治疗师的胜任特征模型。研究表明,基准性胜任特征的存在表明团体心理咨询与治疗师具有共同的胜任特征,如专业知识、变化觉察、把握环境、判断力等;鉴别性胜任特征则反映了不同水平的团体心理咨询与治疗师在胜任特征上的差异,如专业知识、洞察力、观察力、分析性思维等。     

Competency‐based Models of Supervision: Principles and Applications,Promises and Challenges

Major changes initiated by the Psychology Board of Australia (the Board) and by professional bodies both nationally and internationally have placed professional supervision in the spotlight for the practising psychologist and supervisor. Further, within the context of a growing impetus towards competency‐based pedagogies for professional training across disciplines, a recent Board document has indicated that supervisor training must adhere to a competency‐based model within a best‐practice supervision framework (Psychology Board of Australia). For the practising psychologist, the recent recommendation closely follows other initiatives including the introduction of mandatory peer consultation and supervisor accreditation. The current article seeks to clarify for the Australian psychologist the characteristics of competency‐based supervision models for training and supervision, and to unpack the many implications for professional practice. The article outlines the features that distinguish competency models from other supervision models, explains the rationale for and the merits that competency‐driven pedagogies promise, and discusses the challenges these changes will bring to supervision theory and practice.     

Group Psychotherapy Research Studies That Therapists Might Actually Read: My Top 10 List

Much like a bad marriage, the longstanding split between psychotherapy practitioner and researcher continues, each partner feeling unappreciated by and blaming of the other: Therapists are criticized for not reading research and, in turn, criticize researchers for their pursuit of studies that seem irrelevant to the clinical enterprise. In the present article, the author proposes that a shift in the design of psychotherapy research, away from pure outcome studies to models that focus on process, may serve to bridge the divide. Ten research designs exploring aspects of the process of group psychotherapy are illustrated from the recent literature, with the aim of furthering the dialogue between practitioner and researcher.     

Managerial competency modelling and the development of organizational psychology: A Chinese approach

In recent years, China has undergone rapid economic reform and dynamic organizational changes. Several major developments have given special momentum to those changes: China entering the WTO, opening the western regions of China, building up an information network, transforming new management systems nationwide, and encouraging innovations and entrepreneurship. These developments call for more comprehensive and adaptive competencies and new approaches to organizational psychology in China. This provides a national and cultural context of personnel assessment, selection, and development of organizational psychology. Organizational psychology is one of the most active fields for research and application in psychology in China. Three aspects of recent trends are described under a framework of managerial competency modelling. (1) Leadership competence assessment for personnel selection and development has become one of the key aspects of human resources (HR) management in China. Based upon the results from the structured interview and strategic hierarchical job analysis, a model of leadership competency with four dimensions of leadership characteristics and the managerial performance was proposed. The four dimensions are: psychological traits; leadership predispositions; managerial skills; and professional knowledge. (2) HR competency for person‐job‐organization fit. This includes competencies for compensation and motivational strategies, organizational commitment and career management competence, team competence, and group decision‐making skills. (3) Organizational competency for culture and change. This includes an integrative approach to link values with culture, and cross‐cultural leadership skills. On the basis of the recent practice and research developments, a Chinese approach to organizational psychology with important characteristics is summarized: active theoretical development and conceptualization; continuous methodological improvement; close link with HR and management practices; and systematic cross‐cultural socioeconomic perspective. This becomes a key framework for understanding organizational psychology. New directions for research and application in China are highlighted.     

Christopher Dawson and Ayatollah Khatami and ‘The Dialogue of Civilizations’: A Christian–Muslim Conversation1

The English Catholic historian Christopher Dawson (1889–1970) and the former president of Iran, Ayatollah Mohammed Khatami (b. 1943) have made passionate appeals for an international programme of order and dialogue that transcends nationalism, power politics, and strictly materialist ends. Although Dawson's musings were written over half a century before Khatami's speech to the United Nations in 2000, his tone and choice of themes are remarkably similar to those in Khatami's paper: Western culture; metahistorical dialogue; art as dialogue; cultural intrusion and homogenization; religious mysticism; and the resurgence of religion in global politics. A comparison of the vision of these two men is a timely and important contribution to interreligious dialogue. Further, Dawson's thoughts on global history, Europe, and international relations provide excellent insight into the changes in the Western mind which occurred during the twentieth century, Pope Benedict XVI's views on Europe and Muslim–Christian dialogue, and possibilities for common ground between religious groups and cultures. Perhaps most important of all, the parallels between Dawson's and Khatami's concerns and hopes, in spite of their differences, represent an important conversation between Christians and Muslims at a time when it is desperately needed by both groups.     

Narrative and discursive approaches to the analysis of subjectivity in psychotherapy

This paper reviews research that utilises language-based analyses (narrative analysis, discourse analysis and conversation analysis) to examine aspects of subjectivity in the context of psychotherapy. The studies reviewed fall broadly into two main groups. On the one hand, studies which share a view of subjectivity as the sum of internal 'voices' in dialogue adopt a narrative approach, examine subjectivity in terms of organisation, coherence and self-reflection, and consider psychotherapy a process of restoring an organised polyphony. On the other hand, studies which conceptualise subjectivity in terms of 'subject positions' adopt a discursive approach, emphasise the availability of subject positions and flexibility in adopting them and examine psychotherapy as a process of facilitating the flexible adoption by the client of a variety of subject positions. Theoretical, epistemological and methodological issues regarding each of the two approaches are discussed, along with representative studies. We finally examine the implications of these two approaches for understanding psychotherapeutic practice and for theorising and researching subjectivity.     

“Out on the edge of my comfort”: Trainee counsellor/psychotherapists' experiences of spirituality in therapy—A qualitative exploration

The integration of spirituality into counselling and psychotherapy poses complex challenges. Personal spirituality, professional competency and ethical considerations may impact on trainees' experiences of integrating spirituality into therapy. This study adopted an inductive, qualitative approach to explore trainee counsellor/psychotherapists' experiences and perceptions of integrating spirituality into therapy. Six trainee counsellors and psychotherapists were recruited using purposive sampling from a professional counsellor and psychotherapist training institution in the UK. In‐depth, semi‐structured interviews were conducted, audio‐recorded and transcribed verbatim. Thematic analysis of the interviews revealed two overarching themes: spirituality provides support but needs a warning; and spirituality is relevant but undervalued. These themes encompass a wide range of trainee concerns associated with integrating spirituality into therapy. Participants reported that they felt unprepared to work therapeutically with clients' spiritual beliefs. However, the value of spirituality in providing support to both the trainee and their clients was highlighted by several participants. Some participants described integrating clients' spirituality as having a positive impact on the therapeutic relationship, but often felt threatening to the trainee. This research has implications that are important for counselling and psychotherapy training and developing enhanced consideration of client spirituality and the interpersonal environment in which therapy is delivered.     

意象对话技术治疗老年抑郁症的疗效观察

采用临床对照方法探讨意象对话技术对老年抑郁症的疗效,170例老年抑郁症患者随机分为2组,在应用5-羟色胺再摄取抑制剂（SSRIs）类抗抑郁药物治疗的基础上采用不同心理治疗方法：意象组采用意象对话技术;CBT 组采用支持性心理治疗和认知行为技术。所有患者随访一年,用汉密尔顿抑郁量表（HAMD）进行评定。结果表明意象对话技术对老年抑郁症的疗效与CB T疗效相当,且见效快,复发率低。利用其躯体出现的症状、感觉进行意象引导处理,可快速消除或减轻其身心痛苦,证实了意象对话技术可以在老年抑郁症中应用。     

Integrating Religion and Psychology in Therapy: Issues and Recommendations

This article explores the history of the relationship between religion and psychology, integration difficulties within psychotherapy, and recommendations for problem resolution. Two religious frameworks psychologists can use to reduce conflicts and enhance psychotherapy with regard to religious concerns are provided2.     

What anorexic and bulimic patients have to tell: the analysis of patterns of unconscious conflict expressed in stories about everyday events

The development of European associations for counselling and psychotherapy raises questions about the challenge of producing pan-European statements of professional ethics. This article explores the range of ethical predispositions associated with different cultures to be found in Europe before examining how the European Association for Counselling and European Association for Psychotherapy have responded to this diversity. Recently produced ethical statements are examined in some detail. Both are found to be compatible with some of the culturally endorsed ethical predispositions to the exclusion of others. the article concludes by suggesting some of the issues that need to be considered in constructing a truly European ethic for counselling and psychotherapy.     

Whose voice are we hearing,really?

This article, written from the position of someone who has lived experience of therapy for ‘psychosis’ and an interest in participation, explores the degree to which qualitative research truly conveys the voice and perspective of research participants. By exploring five papers focused on diverse experiences of psychotherapy, from the perspective of clients and therapists, it draws out some of the tensions inherent in making interpretations and connections within research papers and the impact this may have on the quality of any conclusions drawn. Finally, it makes some suggestions for ways of meaningfully involving research participants in the process and argues for an ongoing dialogue to prevent our own assumptions and theoretical frameworks from obscuring the importance of this involvement to improve the quality of future research.     

On teaching psychotherapy via consultation and cotherapy

In this article Dr. Whitaker presents his basic assumptions about teaching psychotherapy. He discusses his expectations of himself and his trainees in the teaching relationship and how he attempts to empower the trainee in his/her professional growth. Following this, Dr. Garfield joins Dr. Whitaker in a dialogue about consultation and cotherapy.     

Culturally adapted psychotherapy and the legitimacy of myth: a direct-comparison meta-analysis

Psychotherapy is a culturally encapsulated healing practice that is created from and dedicated to specific cultural contexts (Frank & Frank, 1993; Wampold, 2007; Wrenn, 1962). Consequently, conventional psychotherapy is a practice most suitable for dominant cultural groups within North America and Western Europe but may be culturally incongruent with the values and worldviews of ethnic and racial minority groups (e.g., D. W. Sue, Arredondo, & McDavis, 1992). Culturally adapted psychotherapy has been reported in a previous meta-analysis as more effective for ethnic and racial minorities than a set of heterogeneous control conditions (Griner & Smith, 2006), but the relative efficacy of culturally adapted psychotherapy versus unadapted, bona fide psychotherapy remains unestablished. Furthermore, one particular form of adaptation involving the explanation of illness-known in an anthropological context as the illness myth of universal healing practices (Frank & Frank, 1993)-may be responsible for the differences in outcomes between adapted and unadapted treatments for ethnic and racial minority clients. The present multilevel-model, direct-comparison meta-analysis of published and unpublished studies confirms that culturally adapted psychotherapy is more effective than unadapted, bona fide psychotherapy by d = 0.32 for primary measures of psychological functioning. Adaptation of the illness myth was the sole moderator of superior outcomes via culturally adapted psychotherapy (d = 0.21). Implications of myth adaptation in culturally adapted psychotherapy for future research, training, and practice are discussed.